Siding cutter

ABSTRACT

The cutter consists essentially of an upright supporting frame having a pair of fixed shear blades attached one to each side of the bottom of the frame and extending horizontally therefrom in spaced parallel relation in a plane below the upper portion of the frame which upper portion curves outwardly and horizontally. A pair of supporting plates mounted loosely one on each side of the frame support carry an upper shear blade for coaction with the fixed blades. A linkage means pivotally connects the supporting plates to the support frame and to an actuating handle in such a manner that the upper shear blade moves in a path in a plane from the upper portion of the support frame to a point between the fixed shear blades at a constant angle relative to the surface of the siding when the handle is manipulated. The upper surfaces of the fixed shear blades are formed with fixed stop members. Interchangeable auxiliary fixed blades and stop members are provided to hold and shear a length of siding. The portion of the upstanding frame immediately adjacent to and immediately above the ends of the fixed shear blades attached to the frame is formed with a thickness less than the distance between the fixed shear blades so that the cutter is, in effect, a throatless cutter for the purpose of facilitating making long cuts in siding.

United States Patent [I91 Hall et al.

14 1 Feb. 6, 1973 1 1 SIDING CUTTER [73] Assignee: United States SteelCorporation [22] Filed: Feb. 2, 1971 211 App]. NO.Z 111,964

[52] US. Cl. ..83/453, 83/467, 83/597, 83/605, 83/642 [51] Int. Cl...B26d 7/16 [58] Field of Search ..83/45l, 447, 453, 467, 450, 83/636,597, 605, 642, 643, 609

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,779,325 l/l957 Beckham..83/605 2,665,755 l/l954 McCoy ...83/605 1,122,558 12/1914 Vertunnieta1. ..83/642 Primary Examiner-Andrew R. Juhasz Assistant ExaminerW.Donald Bray AltomeyDonald S. Ferito [5 7 ABSTRACT The cutter consistsessentially of an upright supporting frame having a pair of fixed shearblades attached one to each side of thebottom of the frame and extendinghorizontally therefrom in spaced parallel relation in a plane below theupper portion of the frame which upper portion curves outwardly andhorizontally. A pair of supporting plates mounted loosely one on eachside of the frame support carry an upper shear blade for coaction withthe fixed blades. A linkage means pivotally connects the supportingplates to the support frame and to an actuating handle in such a mannerthat the upper shear blade moves in a path in a plane from the upperportion of the support frame to a point between the fixed shear bladesat a constant .angle relative to the surface of the siding when thehandle is manipulated. The upper surfaces of the fixed shear blades areformed with fixed stop members. Interchangeable auxiliary fixed bladesand stop members are provided to hold and shear a length of siding. Theportion of the upstanding frame immediately adjacent to and immediatelyabove the ends of the fixed shear blades attached to the frame is formedwith a thickness less than the distance between the fixed shear bladesso that the cutter is, in effect, a throatless cutter for the purpose offacilitating making long cu 10 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures AttorneyPATENTEDFEB s 1975 SHEET 10F 2 L m: W MH v: m: INI WWII; EB.

chum/u W0 u M 3/ .8 F l M@ O Q- m IRVING HANDLER 8 CALVIN E. KELLY MA/3MPATENTEU 5 I975 SHEET 2 BF 2 HVVE/VTORS. MARCH/1ND B. HALL,

/R|///V6 HANDLER 8 CALI/INF. KELLY B W idw A I forney smmc CUTTERBACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The invention relates particularly toapparatus for cutting metal siding that is applied as facing on theouter walls of buildings. The siding is usually supplied in the form ofstrips of metal having one edge formed with a butt flange and the otheredge formed with a coacting locking configuration so that a plurality ofcourses of siding may be interlocked during application. The sidingstrips are generally either approximately 8 inches wide or approximatelyinches wide, the latter being provided with a stepped portionintermediate their width so as to have the appearance of two courses ofsiding when installed.

During the installation of such siding, it is necessary to cut thestrips, which are usually 12 feet long, to the proper lengths andfrequently to cut the ends of some of the siding strips at variousangles or to cut notches in the siding so as to properly fit the sidingaround windows, door frames, etc.

Prior to our invention, various types of cutting tools, includingshears, were available for cutting siding strips. However, these cuttingtools were relatively expensive, unduly heavy, limited in flexibility,or required an expensive power source for operation. For example, mostsiding cutters prior to our invention required large housings toaccommodate the longest length of cut, which made them impractical forfield application use and also too expensive for the average fieldcontractor to use at a warehouse or other location removed from theinstallation site. Power shears which were sufficiently light in weightto be portable were slow in operation and a supply of power required fortheir operation was not always available. Other prior cutters for sidingwere limited in the length of out they could make so that they could notprovide short length cutouts normally required for residential buildingssuch as around windows and doors.

It is, accordingly, the primary object of our invention to provide aportable, light-weight cutter for metal siding which can make clean,distortion-free cuts with a minimum of manual effort being exerted.

Another object of the invention is to provide a cutter which can make acut of unlimited length.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a siding cutterwhich is capable of making cuts on both the straight horizontal typesiding as well as the stepped type siding through the use of manualforce alone.

It is a more specialized object of our invention to provide apparatusfor cutting siding which includes a pair of fixed elongated shear bladesand a movable shear blade mounted for coaction with the fixed blades,means for supporting the movable shear blade and linkage means forrotating the movable blade-supporting means about a pivot so that itcooperates with the fixed shear blades in an efficient cutting action.

As a corollary to the object immediately above, it is a furtherspecialized object ofthe invention to provide a cutter in which themeans for rotating the movable shear blade about its pivot includes twosets of pivot links and a rotatable toggle link, means for rotating thetoggle link with one end of the toggle link attached to the movableblade carrier and the otherend of the toggle link attached to a crankhandle.

As a further corollary to the objects above, it is a further object ofour invention to provide a cutter in which a means for preventingdistortion of the siding during cutting is provided by interchangeableguide means adapted to coact with stops on the fixed shear blades torender it suitable for cutting various types of siding.

As a further corollary to the objects above, it is another object of ourinvention to provide a cutter in which the support for the movable bladecarrier is relieved at a portion intermediate its height to permitoperation of the cutter as a throatless unit.

As a further corollary to the objects stated above, it is a furtherobject of our invention to provide a notching block in the cutterbetween and supported by the fixed shear blades.

As a further corollary to the above objects, it is another object of ourinvention to provide a cutter in which the movable shear blade is hollowground on its cutting edge along its entire length.

These and other objects will become more apparent after referring to thefollowing specification and attached drawings, in which:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of apreferred embodiment of the cutter of our invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially along the line IIIIof FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exploded substantially schematic view of the preferredembodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 4 is a partial elevational view showing the preferred embodiment ofthe invention adapted to shear stepped siding.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring more particularly tothe drawing, reference numerals 2 and 4 designate the two fixed shearblades of the cutter of the invention which serve also as the main frameof the cutter. For cutting conventional siding, the fixed shear bladesare preferably made from two %-inch thick hardened and ground steelplates. The rearward ends 2' and 4' of the blades 2 and 4, respectively,are machined to provide on their upper surfaces inch thick ears 12 whichare undercut so as to form a narrow slot 14 on each blade. The outsideof the cars 12 are formed with tapered surfaces 16.

The fixed shear blades 2 and 4 are secured at their rearward ends withnuts and bolts to an upright support frame, designated generally byreference numeral 22. The support frame 22 is a curved plate machined onboth sides to about a inch thickness. Thus, the bottom blades 2 and 4are maintained three-eights inch apart. The support frame 22 is providedwith an intermediate area 23 of reduced thickness, slightly less thanthree-eights inch, immediately above and adjacent to the portion of theframe to which the fixed blades are attached. The purpose of thisreduced thickness area will become apparent. The frame 22 is formed witha vertical portion 24 and a curved, substantially horizontal portion 26extending from the top of the vertical portion 24. The frame 22 isprovided with three pivot holes 28, 30 and 32, as best shown in FIG. 3.A pair of substantially L-shaped clamp plates 34 and 36 are disposedloosely one on each side of the curved portion 26 of frame 22 with theshort leg of each clamp extending upwardly of the frame 22 and the longleg of each clamp projecting beyond the end of the curved portion Twopairs of links 38 and 40 are pivotally connected at one end to the frame22 by means of shoulder bolts 42 and 44, respectively and lock nuts 46and 48, respectively. Shoulder bolt 42 passes through bushings in theends of the links 38 and the pivot hold 30 in the frame 22. Bolt .44passes through bushings in the ends of links '40 and pivot hold 28. Theopposite ends of the links 38 are pivotally attached to pins 50 and 52which project from opposite sides of the clamp plates 34 and 36,respectively, as best shown in FIG. 3. The links 38 are secured to thepins 50 and 52 by dowel pins (not shown).

The opposite ends of links 40 are pivotally attached to the clamp plates34 and 36 by means of a shoulder bolt 58 which passes through the links40 and aligned holes 62 in the clamp plates 34 and 36. Suitable bushingsmay be provided in the holes 62. The shoulder bolt 58 is secured bymeans of a lock nut threaded on its end.

Links 38 and 40 thus move on a common radius and constrain clamp plates34 and 36 to move in an approximately straight path in a single plane ata slight angle toward the bottom shear blades 2 and 4. The links 38 and40 form a substantially parallelogram linkage.

An upper shear blade 66 is rigidly attached between the two clamp plates34 and 36 by means of two boltsand-lock-nuts 68. As best shown in FIG.1, the cutting surface 70 of the upper shear blade 66 has a contourgenerally similar to the contour of the stepped type siding B so thatwhen it is lowered by means of links 38 and 40 it contacts thehorizontal surface of the siding at an angle of approximately 7.0 to ll.0, preferably 95, relative thereto and maintains this angularrelationship substantially constantly during the cut. The contour of theupper shear blade is also suitable for the horizontal flat type siding.The rearward edge of the blade 66 is provided with a dependent flange 72which is tapered so that it contacts the vertical surfaces of the sidingat an angle of preferably as best shown in FIG. 1. Thus, the movableblade 66 makes contact with the siding always at a bias. The oppositeend of the blade 66 is biased from the vertical at approximately 6.

As best shown in FIG. 2, the cutting edge 70 of the blade 66 may beformed with a concave or hollow ground surface along its length in orderto concentrate the cutting force at the edges of the cutting surface ofthe blade 66 and minimize the loss of cutting energy to bending of thesiding during the cut.

A toggle link 74 is pivotally attached by one end to the bolt 58 betweenthe plate 34 and 36. Theopposite end of the link 74 is attached to theclevis end 76 of a handle 78 by lock-nut-and-bolt means 80. The lowerpart of the clevis end 76 is attached to the frame 22 at the pivot hold32 by lock-nut-and-bolt means 84.

The combination of the toggle link 74, which is attached to the handle78 at one end and to the bolt 58 at its other end, and the parallelogramlinkage formed by the links 38 and 40 causes the movable shear blade toapproach and cut the siding at a constantly held angle to the surfacethereof. This results in the cut being made progressively from the buttflange end to the locking edge of the siding or from left to right asviewed in FIG. 1, with the movable shear blade maintaining substantiallythe same angular relationship to with the horizontal surface of thesiding during the entire cut. The combination of the toggle linkage andthe substantially parallelogram linkage also provides greater handleforce magnification and, therefore, less effort is required at the timeof cutting the locking edge of the siding where three thicknesses ofcutting must be cut due to the folded configuration of the siding at itslocking edge 106.

The lower end of the handle 78 is welded or otherwise fixedly attachedto the clevis end 76. A pipe extension 90 may be removably attached tothe end of the handle 78 by a dowel pin 92. The pipe extension providesmaximum leverage while still affording portability by virtue of the factthat it can be removed when the cutter is to be moved from one locationto another. Two stop bars 94 are fixedly mountedon and project forwardlyof the clevis end 76, as best shown in FIG. 3.

The ends of the fixed shear blades 2 and 4 remote from the support frame22 are attached to and separated by a flat notching black 96 by nut andbolt means. Notching black 96, which is of the same thickness as thebottom portion of frame 22, serves to precisely space the forward endsof the blades 2 and 4 similarly to frame 22. The notching block 96 isadjustably positioned by means of slotted openings 102, as best shown inFIG. 3, to allow for adjustment to obtain suitable clearance for uppershear blade 66 and also to provide a shearing action of the blade 66 onthe siding when it is desired to cut a notch in the locking edge of thesiding. An undercut angle of preferably 7.5 is provided on the upperinner edge of the notching block 96 to provide the necessary rake whenit is desired to form a notch in the siding. The hollow ground cuttingedge surface of the movable blade 66 mating with the inner upper edge104 of the notching block 96 provides a unique shearing action bypermitting the shearing to go around a 90 angle without tearing orbending of the metal. This feature also permits initial notching of thelocking edge of the siding for easier access of tin snips. It will beunderstood that the cutting surface of movable blade 66 need not behollow ground to effect siding cutting. If the blade 66 is not hollowground, the inner upper edge 104 of the notching block 96 may beprovided with a concave portion (not shown) intermediate its sides toachieve the unique shearing action described immediately above.

A rectangular siding-stop block 108 is removably attached to the forwardends of the blades 2 and 4 by means of dowel pins which project from theunder surface of the block 108 and fit removably into suitable holesdrilled irito the upper surfaces of the auxiliary shear and stop members118. As best shown in FIG. 1, the block 108 prevents the butt flangeedge of siding A from distorting when the locking edge is being sheared.Block 108 maybe suitably secured to one of the fixed blades 2 or 4 by asuitable length of chain 114 and screw 116 to prevent misplacement ofthe block.

Two L-shaped bars 118 are provided to support the stepped portion 120when a stepped type siding B, as best shown in FIG. 4, is being cut, andalso to coact with the movable shear blade 66 as auxiliary fixed shearblades with blades 2 and 4 during cutting of the stepped siding. Thebars 118 are contoured to fully support the stepped portion of siding B,and are attached one to each of the blades 2 and 4 by cap bolts 123which project through slots in the L-shaped bars and are threaded intosuitable holes in the blades 2 and 4. When the bars 118 are not in use,they are mounted in a reverse position, as best shown in FIG. 1, to thefixed blades 2 and In order that the cutter remain steady when beingused, a supporting plate 124 may be bolted to the underside of each endof the pair of fixed blades 2 and 4. The support plates also serve tomaintain the cutter in a raised position so as to facilitate removal ofscrap.

In operation, for shearing flat horizontal siding A at a right angle toits length, the handle 78 is moved to its most rearward position, asshown in FIG. 1, which raises the upper blade 66 to its highest point.The siding A is then placed on the blades 2 and 4 so that it is snugbetween the ears 12 and the stop block 108. The handle 78 is then movedforward and downward, which causes the blade 66 to be lowered and sheara inch wide strip out of the siding severing it into two parts. Due tothe linkage arrangement of the invention, when the handle 78 is moveddownward, the movable shear blade 66 approaches the horizontal surfaceof the siding at an angle of 7 to II", preferably 9.5", so that the buttflange end (as viewed in FIG. 1) of the siding is contacted first by theblade 66, and, with the blade constantly maintaining substantially thesame angular relationship to the siding surface, the cut is madeprogressively toward the locking edge of the siding as the handle 78 iscontinued to be moved downwardly. This arrangement insures a clean cutwith no distortion of the siding with a minimum of manual effort beingrequired during the cutting operation. During the cutting of the lockingedge portion 106 of the siding A, the handle 78 is in approximately ahorizontal position. This is another advantageous feature since theoperator can use his body weight to add to the already high leveragewhich the linkage arrangement provides.

For making a cut at any angle of the flat horizontal siding A the rightangle cut is first made as explained above. The siding is then moved tothe desired angle relative to the movable blade 66, and the handle 78 isoperated in the same manner as is done when making the right angle cut.In making the angular cut, the movable blade 66 removes a inch widestrip completely from the siding A when the end of the movable blade 66passes by the notching block 96. The siding A can then be moved forwardbeing guided by the reduced thickness area 23 of the support frame 22,and another similar cut is made. The operation may be continued untilany desired length of cut is made. Taking advantage of the throatlessfeature of the cutter of the invention, a long cut can be made with asmall size shear, thus maintaining portability and nominal tool cost.

To cut the stepped siding B at a right angle, the stop block 108 isremoved and the bars 118 are reversed and attached to the upper portionsof the blades 2 and 4. The stepped siding B is placed in position withits butt flange edge engaged by the ears l2 and the stepped portion 120of the siding B supported by the bars 118. The cutting operation issimilar to that employed for the right angle cuts of the horizontal flatsiding A.

In cutting either flat horizontal type siding A or stepped typed sidingB, over-travel of the movable shear blade 66 is prevented by the stopbars 94 contacting the clamp plates 34 and 36 as the handle 78 is moveddownwardly. Although we have shown but two embodiments of our invention,other adaptations and modifications may be made without departing fromthe scope of the following claims.

We claim:

1. Apparatus for cutting siding having a butt flange along one edgewhich comprises an upright support frame including a substantiallyvertical portion and a portion extending generally horizontally from theupper part of said vertical portion, a pair of fixed elongated shearblades attached at one end one on each side of the bottom part of saidvertical portion and extending therefrom in spaced parallel relation toeach other in a plane below said horizontally extending portion of saidframe, a lever handle pivotally connected at one end to the free end ofthe horizontal portion of said frame, a movable shear blade, linkagemeans pivotally linking said movable shear blade and said horizontalportion of said frame for movement in a path in a plane extending fromsaid horizontal portion downwardly to between said fixed shear blades atan angle of approximately 7.0 to l l.0 relative to the surface of saidsiding, a link connecting said handle to said linkage means wherebymovement of said handle effects movement of said movable shear bladealong said path with said movable shear blade maintained constantly atan angle of approximately 7.0 to l 1.0 relative to the surface of saidsiding, a tapered undercut ear formed on the upper surface of each ofsaid fixed shear blades intermediate the end thereof for receiving thebutt flange of saidsiding and providing a guide and rest for saidsiding.

2. Apparatus as defined by claim 1 including a stop on the uppersurfaces of said fixed shear blades remote from said undercut ear forengaging a surface of said siding remote from said butt flange tothereby immobilize said siding while being cut.

3. Apparatus as defined by claim 1 in which the vertical portion of saidframe immediately above said fixed shear blades is of a thickness lessthan the distance between said fixed shear blades.

4. Apparatus as defined by claim 1 including a notching-spacer blockdisposed between the end of said fixed shear blades remote from saidframe, the thickness of said notching-spacer block being substantiallythe same as the vertical portion of said frame disposed between saidfixed shear blades, the upper inner edge of said notching-spacer blockbeing angularly shaped to provide a suitable rake angle to cooperatewith said movable shear blade in its cutting action.

5. Apparatus as defined by claim 4 in which the cutting surface of saidmovable shear blade is hollow ground along its length.

6. Apparatus as defined by claim 1 in which the cutting edge of saidmovable shear blade is contoured along its length similarly to thecontour of said siding including a depending abutment at one end forengaging the butt flange of said siding, the flange-engaging side ofsaid abutment being tapered diminishing in thickness toward its outerend, the opposite end of said movable shear blade being tapered inwardlyfrom the vertical, and the cutting edge of said movable shear betweensaid abutment and said opposite end being tapered so that it contactsthe horizontal surface of said siding at a suitable angle.

7. Apparatus as defined by claim 1 including a support plate attached tothe underside and spanning the space between said pair of fixed shearblades adjacent each end thereof.

8. Apparatus for cutting siding having a butt flange along one edge, alocking configuration along its opposing edge, and a stepped portionintermediate said edges which comprises an upright support frameincluding a substantially vertical portion and a portion extendinggenerally horizontally from the upper part of said vertical portion, apair of fixed elongated shear blades attached by one end one on eachside of the bottom part of said vertical portion and extending therefromin spaced parallel relation to each other in a plane below saidhorizontally extending end to the free end of said horizontal portion ofsaid frame, a movable shear blade, means pivotally linking said movableshear blade and said horizontal portion of said frame for movement in apath in a plane extending from said horizontal portion downwardly tobetween said fixed shear blades at an angle of approximately 7.0 to ll.0 relative to the surface of said siding, a link connecting saidhandle to said linkage means whereby movement of said handle effectsmovement of said movable shear blade along said path with said movableshear blade maintained constantly at an angle of approximately c 7.0 to110 relative to the surface of said siding, a tapered undercut earformed on the upper surface of each of said fixed shear bladesintermediate the end thereof for receiving the butt flange of saidsiding and providing a guide and rest for said siding, an auxiliaryrigid shear blade removably disposed on the upper surface of each ofsaid pair of said fixed shear blades remote from said undercut earengaging the stepped portion of said siding to thereby support andimmobilize said siding .while being cut, said movable shearblade'coacting with said first-mentioned fixed shear blades and saidauxiliary rigid shear blades to cut said siding. 9. Apparatus as definedby claim 8 including a notching-spacer block disposed between the endsof said pair of fixed shear blades remote from said frame, the thicknessof said notching-spacer block being substantially the same as thevertical portion of said frame disposed between said fixed shear blades,the upper,

edge of said notching-spacer block being angularly shaped to provide asuitable rake angle to cooperate with said movable shear blade in itscutting action, the upper edge of said notching-spacer block beingformed with a concave portion intermediate its sides.

10. Apparatus for cutting siding having a butt flange along with edgeand a locking configuration along its opposite edge, which comprises anupright support frame including a substantially vertical portion and aportion extending generally horizontally from the upper part of saidvertical portion, a pair of fixed elongated shear blades attached by oneend one on each side of the bottom part of said vertical portion and extending therefrom in spaced parallel relation to each other in a planebelow said horizontally extending portion of said frame, a lever handlepivotally connected at one end to the free end of said horizontalportion of said frame, a movable shear blade, linkage means pivotallylinking said movable shear blade and said horizontal portion of saidframe for movement in a path in a plane extending from said horizontalportion downwardly to between said fixed shear blades at an angle ofapproximately to l l.0 relative to the surface of said siding, a linkconnecting handle to said linkage means whereby movement of said handleeffects movement of said movable shear blade along said path with saidmovable shear blade maintained constantly at an angle of approximately7.0 to l l.0 relative to the surface of said siding, a tapered undercutear fonned on the upper surface of each of said fixed shear bladesintermediate the end thereof for receiving the butt flange of saidsiding and providing a guide and rest for said siding, a stop removablydisposed on the upper surface of each of said fixed shear blades remotefrom said undercut ear for engaging the locking configurated edge ofsaid siding to thereby immobilize said siding .while being cut.

1. Apparatus for cutting siding having a butt flange along one edgewhich comprises an upright support frame including a substantiallyvertical portion and a portion extending generally horizontally from theupper part of said vertical portion, a pair of fixed elongated shearblades attached at one end one on each side of the bottom part of saidvertical portion and extending therefrom in spaced parallel relation toeach other in a plane below said horizontally extending portion of saidframe, a lever handle pivotally connected at one end to the free end ofthe horizontal portion of said frame, a movable shear blade, linkagemeans pivotally liNking said movable shear blade and said horizontalportion of said frame for movement in a path in a plane extending fromsaid horizontal portion downwardly to between said fixed shear blades atan angle of approximately 7.0* to 11.0* relative to the surface of saidsiding, a link connecting said handle to said linkage means wherebymovement of said handle effects movement of said movable shear bladealong said path with said movable shear blade maintained constantly atan angle of approximately 7.0* to 11.0* relative to the surface of saidsiding, a tapered undercut ear formed on the upper surface of each ofsaid fixed shear blades intermediate the end thereof for receiving thebutt flange of said siding and providing a guide and rest for saidsiding.
 1. Apparatus for cutting siding having a butt flange along oneedge which comprises an upright support frame including a substantiallyvertical portion and a portion extending generally horizontally from theupper part of said vertical portion, a pair of fixed elongated shearblades attached at one end one on each side of the bottom part of saidvertical portion and extending therefrom in spaced parallel relation toeach other in a plane below said horizontally extending portion of saidframe, a lever handle pivotally connected at one end to the free end ofthe horizontal portion of said frame, a movable shear blade, linkagemeans pivotally liNking said movable shear blade and said horizontalportion of said frame for movement in a path in a plane extending fromsaid horizontal portion downwardly to between said fixed shear blades atan angle of approximately 7.0* to 11.0* relative to the surface of saidsiding, a link connecting said handle to said linkage means wherebymovement of said handle effects movement of said movable shear bladealong said path with said movable shear blade maintained constantly atan angle of approximately 7.0* to 11.0* relative to the surface of saidsiding, a tapered undercut ear formed on the upper surface of each ofsaid fixed shear blades intermediate the end thereof for receiving thebutt flange of said siding and providing a guide and rest for saidsiding.
 2. Apparatus as defined by claim 1 including a stop on the uppersurfaces of said fixed shear blades remote from said undercut ear forengaging a surface of said siding remote from said butt flange tothereby immobilize said siding while being cut.
 3. Apparatus as definedby claim 1 in which the vertical portion of said frame immediately abovesaid fixed shear blades is of a thickness less than the distance betweensaid fixed shear blades.
 4. Apparatus as defined by claim 1 including anotching-spacer block disposed between the end of said fixed shearblades remote from said frame, the thickness of said notching-spacerblock being substantially the same as the vertical portion of said framedisposed between said fixed shear blades, the upper inner edge of saidnotching-spacer block being angularly shaped to provide a suitable rakeangle to cooperate with said movable shear blade in its cutting action.5. Apparatus as defined by claim 4 in which the cutting surface of saidmovable shear blade is hollow ground along its length.
 6. Apparatus asdefined by claim 1 in which the cutting edge of said movable shear bladeis contoured along its length similarly to the contour of said sidingincluding a depending abutment at one end for engaging the butt flangeof said siding, the flange-engaging side of said abutment being tapereddiminishing in thickness toward its outer end, the opposite end of saidmovable shear blade being tapered inwardly from the vertical, and thecutting edge of said movable shear between said abutment and saidopposite end being tapered so that it contacts the horizontal surface ofsaid siding at a suitable angle.
 7. Apparatus as defined by claim 1including a support plate attached to the underside and spanning thespace between said pair of fixed shear blades adjacent each end thereof.8. Apparatus for cutting siding having a butt flange along one edge, alocking configuration along its opposing edge, and a stepped portionintermediate said edges which comprises an upright support frameincluding a substantially vertical portion and a portion extendinggenerally horizontally from the upper part of said vertical portion, apair of fixed elongated shear blades attached by one end one on eachside of the bottom part of said vertical portion and extending therefromin spaced parallel relation to each other in a plane below saidhorizontally extending end to the free end of said horizontal portion ofsaid frame, a movable shear blade, means pivotally linking said movableshear blade and said horizontal portion of said frame for movement in apath in a plane extending from said horizontal portion downwardly tobetween said fixed shear blades at an angle of approximately 7.0* to11.0* relative to the surface of said siding, a link connecting saidhandle to said linkage means whereby movement of said handle effectsmovement of said movable shear blade along said path with said movableshear blade maintained constantly at an angle of approximately c 7.0* to11.0* relative to the surface of said siding, a tapered undercut earformed on the upper surface of each of said fixed shear bladesintermediate the end thereof foR receiving the butt flange of saidsiding and providing a guide and rest for said siding, an auxiliaryrigid shear blade removably disposed on the upper surface of each ofsaid pair of said fixed shear blades remote from said undercut earengaging the stepped portion of said siding to thereby support andimmobilize said siding while being cut, said movable shear bladecoacting with said first-mentioned fixed shear blades and said auxiliaryrigid shear blades to cut said siding.
 9. Apparatus as defined by claim8 including a notching-spacer block disposed between the ends of saidpair of fixed shear blades remote from said frame, the thickness of saidnotching-spacer block being substantially the same as the verticalportion of said frame disposed between said fixed shear blades, theupper, edge of said notching-spacer block being angularly shaped toprovide a suitable rake angle to cooperate with said movable shear bladein its cutting action, the upper edge of said notching-spacer blockbeing formed with a concave portion intermediate its sides.